Many anglers have suffered the double disappointment of loosing a large fish and a prized fishing rod by untimely laying the rod down before the fish strikes. Similar problems also plague other sportsmen who are prone to loosing articles in the water, canoe paddles being a prime example.
A need is therefor realized for some form of device for tethering the article to a relatively stationary surface, such as the gunnel of a boat, a float tube, the owner's clothing, or the like.
Indeed, various forms of leash devices have been developed that do solve the problem of loss of the article. However, such leash devices typically make use of a non-elastic strap or cable which can do damage to the attached article when the length of the tether runs out and the article is pulled between the relatively stationary surface and the cause of the tensioning force.
Further, in the case of fishing, a non-extensible strap or cable will typically jerk the hook from the mouth of a striking fish, or will abruptly halt motion of the attached fishing rod and cause the fishing line to break, loosing the fish, line, and bait in the process.
A need therefor has remained for a leash device that will not only save the article from being lost, but that will also function to avoid damage to the article and loss of the connection between the article and the tension producing force (a fish, for example).
The present invention fills the above need and adds still other advantages which will be readily understood from the following description and accompanying drawings.